Biden Needs a Win, and He May Get a Big Endorsement

South Carolina 'kingmaker' Jim Clyburn will announce his pick Wednesday
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 24, 2020 8:17 AM CST
Biden Needs a Win, and He May Get a Big Endorsement
In this 2010 photo, Vice President Joe Biden gets a hug from U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-SC, during the dedication ceremony of the new Ernest F. Hollings Special Collections Library in Columbia, S.C.   (AP Photo/Mary Ann Chastain)

Joe Biden is riding momentum from his second-place finish in Nevada as he heads into what Politico sees as a "must-win" state for him, South Carolina. It now appears that Biden will get the influential endorsement of longtime ally Rep. Jim Clyburn, the House majority whip. Clyburn will announce his pick Wednesday, reports the Post and Courier, which sees Biden, Amy Klobuchar, and Elizabeth Warren as the three possibilities. But both Politico and NBC News are reporting that Clyburn already has settled on Biden. The primary is Saturday.

In South Carolina politics, where two-thirds of the electorate are African American, Clyburn's sway is huge—the stories call him "kingmaker." He reportedly promised the Democratic National Committee that he would not name his pick until after Tuesday's debate. Biden continues to lead in the polls in South Carolina, though his lead has been shrinking in recent weeks. The latest CBS News poll had Biden at 28% and Bernie Sanders at 23%, followed by Tom Steyer (18%), Warren (12%), Pete Buttigieg (10%) and Klobuchar (4%).

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